well lads just wondering when you start a pick up are all the dash lights ment to come on like abs light fluid light heater light and so on only my heater light oil light and battery light come on and my parking light light flashses on and off depending how bumpy the road is.also my dad was puttin brake fluid in but put it in the power steering resevoir instead it was only a bit but just wondering would it do damage i drained the resevoir as best i could

Hello,

I'm not sure about which lights are supposed to come on at start up. The 'parking light' you mention may well be flickering due to low brake fluid sloshing about on bumpy roads. You should check for leaks in the braking system. It would also be worth checking how much thickness is left on your brake pads as the fluid level drops as these wear down.

With regard to your power steering reservoir, the recommended liquid is Hydraulic Oil to spec G 002 000 (The Book of Haynes, page 0.17). I'm not sure that brake fluid would be entirely compatible with the seals on the steering rack, pump, etc. However, if it was only a small amount and you've drained the reservoir you might be ok, but I stand to be corrected.

The reservoir is the highest point on the power steering system. I'm not familiar with the relative densities of oil and brake fluid but you could do a quick test to see if the brake fluid is likely to have gone down into the system by putting some hydraulic oil into a clear bottle and adding some brake fluid. If the brake fluid floats on top of the oil, it follows that it's likely to have remained in the reservoir and by draining the reservoir, you should have removed the brake fluid. Worth a try?

Hope this helps.

If you haven't got a leak in the brake system, then it's likely your pads will be worth inspecting, as the level drops because of that and also the rear brakes wearing. Topping up when the pads are worn is usually a mistake as when you change the pads, fluid everywhere!

thanks lads think i sorted it got a pump and sucked it all out. id say i have loose connections on the dash lamps when i pull the handbrake the handbrake light doesnt come on either does my abs light or brake fluid light

when i start the car and the side light lamp comes on when i bang the dash are them small dash bulbs hard to get id prefer to have it working right